Patrick Mendis
Visiting Professor of Global Affairs, National Chengchi University
May 18, 2017
During his historic visit to Sri Lanka in September 2014, President Xi Jinping described the island as a “splendid pearl” while the two countries signed over twenty bilateral agreements in Colombo. Symbolized by the Buddhist-inspired Lotus Tower on the waterfront of the picturesque Beira Lake in the commercial district, the globalizing BRI is reviving the ancient glory of “trade-for-peace” to bring about a more harmonious and prosperous “Pacific New World Order” for the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.
Apr 11, 2017
Observing the changing dynamics in the United States and elsewhere in the world, the unsettling question is: Will the United States follow the experience of centralized Confucian power—and by default the Communist Party of China (CPC)—to create a Hamiltonian world for Hamiltonians?
Feb 16, 2017
Apart from various niches of the political and academic intelligentsia, America’s relationship with China is one that continues to be largely and mutually beneficial but misunderstood, and one that is generally swept under the carpet in favor of America’s Euro-centric view of the world.
Jan 16, 2017
As the TPP trade pact fizzles away, China would happily expand its domain of influence in the Pacific Rim region while U.S. allies and friends inevitably look for a more reliable partner in the neighborhood. As these geopolitical realities set in, will Trump’s campaign promises to “Make America Great Again” eventually result in “Making China Great Again” and leave the U.S. much less relevant?
Oct 24, 2016
A closer look at the Maritime Silk Road plan suggests that materializing the ambitious initiative is facing several challenges due to grievances with some stakeholders in the Indo-Pacific. If China wants to materialize the initiative, it has to return to its so-called “Peaceful Rise.”